Abdel-Aziz Al-Shamary, 21, from Darlington, is accused of raping a British woman in her 30s after she left The Greyhound pub, in Darlington, Co Durham, following a night out in May this year. (Picture: North News)

A man who allegedly raped a woman on a riverbank told police he was Saddam Hussein, a court has heard.

Abdel-Aziz Al-Shamary, 21, was arrested shortly after the woman, in her 30s, was found near the river with her face covered in blood and her jeans and underwear around her ankles.

When he was taken into custody he shouted out to a female officer trying to speak to him, Teeside crown court heard.

‘Do you know Saddam Hussein? I am Saddam Hussein. I will not talk to you, you are a woman,’ he yelled.

PC Jackie Mallows told the court: ‘He kept telling me not to touch him and he also said “I will not speak to you, you are a woman – in my country we speak to men”.’

Al-Shamary, who was following the evidence with the help of an Arabic interpreter, is accused of attacking a white British woman in her 30s after she left The Greyhound pub, in Darlington, Co Durham, following a night out in May this year.

She told police officers in a video statement: ‘I left the pub and he came over to me and pushed me over on the grass of the river bank.

The alleged rape happened close to the River Skerne in Darlington, County Durham (Picture: North News)

‘I fell face down with my arms in front of me and I turned to look at him and he punched me in the face.

‘He punched me again with his fist and hit me on the nose, when I put my hand to my face it was covered in blood.

‘Then he got on top of me from behind, I could feel his weight on me. He pulled down my jeans and my pants and I could feel that he was raping me.

Gemma Stirling told the court she was left pale and shaking after he stood up close to her.

She said: ‘As he walked away he said: “Allah is going to get you”.’

Prosecutor Paul Abrahams revealed that Al-Shamary, who had been drinking from two bottles of Jack Daniels whiskey, had been watching porn videos on his mobile phone around four hours before the attack.

He said: ‘He was watching people having sex outdoors. It is relevant as when confronted with a lone female he raped her.’